Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Sisters and brothers, grace to you and peace, in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

A prominent part of the brokenness of our human nature is our tendency to count and to track, to keep tallies with regard to other people. We may count and register offenses against us, we may keep track of how many favors we’ve done others. We’ve perhaps grown beyond the strictures of the 19th century where each social encounter required a reciprocity from the other, but there is still that sense that if someone invites us to dinner, we wonder if we owe them one. Some people are extremely uncomfortable receiving gifts because they seem to feel it obligates them to give one in return.

It doesn’t take a great deal of thought to arrive at the conclusion that such a tendency among us gives us a somewhat awkward, if not downright uncomfortable relationship with the idea of unmerited grace. We who are baptized into Christ claim such grace, we boldly preach that God’s love is ours through Jesus without our doing anything. And yet, we’re not completely ready to let go of our ledgers and spreadsheets. Sometimes because we think our balance is pretty positive, and somewhere in the back of our minds we might want to get credit for that. Sometimes because even if we think our balance might not be the most positive, we’re certain it’s better than others’, and think that should be noted. And sometimes because we fear the opposite and yet aren’t sure we can trust this grace. I’ve been surprised over the years at the number of conversations I’ve had with Christians nearing the end of their days who quietly wonder if they’ve “done enough,” have lived a good enough life. This even from Lutherans of 8 or 9 decades who presumably have heard preaching about God’s unlimited and free gift of grace their whole lives.

Today Jesus tells a parable “to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt.” In short, he tells a parable to us, if ever we’ve played the accountant with life, if ever we’ve kept a record of wrongs or rights, our own or others. And in this parable there is a trap. We’ll want to pay attention to that. But there is also abiding grace. And we certainly want to hear that.

The trap stems from Jesus’ understanding of our broken human nature.

We’ve been accustomed to seeing the Incarnation as God coming to us, so that we might know God fully. John the evangelist tells us this right at the start of his Gospel – the Son, close to the Father’s heart, makes God known to us.

But I wonder if this is a two-way street for God. Is it possible that the Incarnation was also necessary for God, that God might know us better? Not only that we begin to understand God, but that God begins to understand us? Because to look at Jesus, that certainly seems the case.

Jesus shows a deep awareness of human nature in this parable. He tells it, as Luke says, to those who thought themselves righteous. Then he makes the Pharisee just that kind of person.

And that’s when the trap springs: the minute we hear this story, we’re tempted to pray, “Thank God I’m not like that Pharisee.” The temptation for counters and makers of tallies is always to compare ourselves to others. Somehow if we can be sure that we’re not as bad as someone else, we feel better. And here the irony is our self-righteousness tells us to give thanks that we aren’t self-righteous like that Pharisee.

What Jesus gets about us is that we can’t really bring ourselves to trust that his grace, his gift of the reign and rule of God, is ours as a gift. And he tells a story that points that out while at the same time trapping us into revealing our self-righteousness as much as the Pharisee. And even if we feel as if we’re the repentant tax collector, we’re still tempted to gloat that we’re on the right side, not like that braggart. And that puts us back into the same boat.

And what I think this means for us is this: I think what Jesus is doing here is telling us that all accounting and tallying is over and done. Paul says it in Colossians: “God made you alive together with Christ, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross.” (Col. 2:13-14) The old way of accounting and tallying is gone, forever. It’s been nailed to the cross. At the cross, Jesus draws the whole world to himself, coming not to judge the world but to save it. (John 12:32, 47, John 3:17) And that means we need to look at this parable again. Because there’s grace here that we’ve been missing.

The grace here is this: God in Jesus reveals complete disinterest in accounting, which is good news for us sinners.

Jesus’ death and resurrection are the end of the tracking, the end of the counting and comparing. And this is such an important thing for us to remember, given our brokenness.

Because whenever we debate ethical issues and moral questions, often the fuel to the fire of some arguments is the fear that somewhere someone might be getting away with something. That much as we know we need grace, we still can’t let go of our spreadsheets, just in case, and even though, like the workers in another parable of Jesus’, we have received a more than fair wage for our labor, we’re envious that others might get the same gift with a lot less work.

And so ironically, the giver of God’s grace needs to convince us that grace is a good thing. That it’s incredible good news that the father welcomes back the wayward son in love and loves the elder brother as well – what they have or haven’t done makes no difference to the father’s love. That it’s good news that someone like Peter who betrayed Jesus and abandoned him could be welcomed to breakfast after the resurrection and be loved, and then invited to go out as an ambassador of God’s amazing love. That it’s good news that the Son of God could forgive those who killed him and a convicted murderer who hung beside him without asking for their accounting.

What this means is that the Pharisee and the tax collector were both loved by God, but only the tax collector knew it. He went home “justified,” as Jesus said, because he trusted in God’s forgiveness. But I believe that Jesus would teach us that the Pharisee in God’s eyes was justified – just not in his own. Because we know him, because he is us, and here’s his problem: what is he going to do in the middle of the night when he wakes up in a cold sweat afraid he forgot to do something? Or realizes he did something not by the books? In the dark night of the soul, he never knows if he is justified. Martin Luther understood that anguish, that cold sweat, and it led to his great discovery of the grace of God for all, and of the love of God in Jesus instead of the judgment of God.

As it turns out, while God has no interest in accounting, God loves accountants. And tally makers. Just as much as those poor schlubs among us who never dare to reconcile our divine bankbooks because we know we are so far in the red all we can do is throw ourselves on the divine mercy of God.

Jesus tells us this story to wake us up to the glory of his grace.

He knows how we think, how we feel, who we are – he was one of us, after all. And he knows how hard it is for us to accept something freely.

But that is exactly what we are offered, this Good News: God’s love is the same for both in this story, and the same for all of us in this room, and the same for the entire world. God’s love is complete, unending, and ultimate. God doesn’t want or need abject repentance any more than God wants or needs self-righteous prayers – God’s love is always surrounding and holding us, even at our worst. The loss for the Pharisee is not God’s love – he always has that – the loss is that he didn’t know it.

So the advantage to showing repentance, to turning toward God is simply this: it means we know where grace is, where life is, where home is. And so we have a better chance of actually finding it, experiencing it. If you’re starving to death and there’s ample food available, it’s helpful to admit you’re hungry. Or you might ignore the feast.

God’s not keeping books anymore, and that’s incredible good news. God fill us all with faith and hope, that we might learn to trust this for ourselves.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Accent on Worship My teachers at Gettysburg Seminary taught me that to be Lutheran is to be a member of a reform movement – a protest movement, if you like – within the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. Note that language: We Lutherans are not a “new” church; we are not the “only” or the “only true” Church. (Martin Marty wrote that Lutherans believe that we have the truth; we don’t believe, however, that we are the only ones who do.) We are a part of God’s (admittedly messed-up) Church – together with Roman Catholics, against whom our namesake Martin Luther raised some claims of false teaching; with the Eastern Orthodox communion of churches, about whom most of us know very little; with Anglican/Episcopalians and Presbyterians and Pentecostals. The Lutheran Church came into being to argue for one primary reform of Church teaching – namely, that the news of Jesus must be proclaimed as “promise” (Gospel) and not as threat (“Law”). But there was no intention to establish a new or separated Church. Indeed, the Lutheran Confessions argue passionately that we speak as fellow Christians to fellow Christians. The schism sparked by the Reformation was a tragic development – perhaps inevitable in its day, but tragic nevertheless. Lutherans, then, should approach the festival of Reformation Day with mixed feelings. With good reason we celebrate our unique, protest-ant heritage: Friar Martin’s standing up against the abuses of the Church of his day (many of which, arguably, are no longer an issue, thank God); “justification by grace through faith”; “A Mighty Fortress”; Bibles in the language of the people. The Reformation was a necessary and (mostly) laudable attempt to bring reform to the Church. But in that celebration, we must resist any inclination to feel comfortable with the notion of a divided Church. In John’s Gospel, Our Lord prayed to the Father that his followers would be one in their knowledge of the God. The continuing – and increasing – division of the Church is an insult to God. So perhaps this year’s Reformation feast is a good time to focus our attention on what it means to be a part of a reform movement within the one Christian Church today. Might it be time to temper our self-congratulation with repentance for what we have done to divide Christ’s Church? Can we turn our protest against the chauvinism (even our own) of the various churches toward one another? Shouldn’t we challenge the churches to come together in the service of the Gospel in obedience to the will of God? We proudly sing our commitment to “one Lord, one faith, one birth [baptism].” Perhaps we Lutherans can turn our protest-ant heritage toward the reunion of the Church and against those things that divide her.

Consecration Sunday Set for November 14 Consecration Sunday, the day members of Mount Olive pledge their intentions for giving in 2011, will be Sunday, Nov. 14. This is a date change from the October calendar, so please take note. At worship that day members of Mount Olive will be invited to offer pledge cards declaring their intent for giving to the ministry God has called us to do together. These pledge cards and current third quarter contribution statements will arrive in the mail soon. Then, on Christ the King Sunday, Nov. 21, we will focus on opportunities for service in the ministries of Mount Olive held between services, and host a celebratory meal following the second liturgy. As we end the Church Year, we will commit ourselves in these two weeks to the work that God has placed before us here, and all members are invited to participate in these events.

Adult Forum, Sunday October 31 This Sunday’s forum will be a “getting-to-know-you” session with our new pastor, Joseph Crippen.

The Wish List The Mount Olive Wish List is now posted on the bulletin board next to the altar flower donation list in the church office. Each item is separately listed, along with its projected cost. There may be some shipping costs involved, so the donor may certainly round up to offset those costs, or wait for clarification for total cost before remitting payment. There is space for a donor's name and phone number so that the donor can be contacted about how best to send the funds for the item donated. Currently, there are over 40 furniture items, as well as banner stands and several Godly Play items on the list. The Vestry hopes that members will find this to be a satisfying way to give, to the glory of God, certain useful items needed to enhance our learning, fellowship, office, and worship spaces. In addition, the Mount Olive Wish List is available for all committees who are in need of funding certain items or events that are beyond the annual budget. Feel free to search for the item you'd most like to donate and sign up today!! We've already received an anonymous donation of the new reception desk for the West Reception area. We believe there may be one more anonymous donation as well. While we appreciate all donors, we'd prefer to publicly thank and recognize them if possible. However, if you wish to remain anonymous, simply call Vice President Brian Jacobs, so that arrangements can be made, and so that particular item can be removed from the list. The list will be updated every Sunday. Thank you for perusing the list and thank you for your generosity!

From India With Love In 1987, Mount Olive helped to fuel the launch of the Bethania Kids ministry, and to this day has continued to support it through its mission offerings and prayers. The mission of Bethania is "to bring wholeness and hope to poor, abandoned and disabled children in south India, and to equip them to share God's love." This is accomplished through day care centers, after-school programs, orphanages, a sewing program for girls, and centers for disabled children and adults. On Sunday, November 14, the congregation will have a rare opportunity to meet two of the ministry's India workers and to hear first-hand about the work they are doing. Godfrey Henry Immanual and Paramadass, visiting the States from India for the first time, will speak at our education forum, and following the second liturgy there will be an Indian meal - an opportunity to welcome them to Mount Olive and socialize with them. Mark your calendar now so that you can see and celebrate what your Bethania support is doing. For more information, contact Missions Director Paul Schadewald, Gene Hennig, or Mark Spitzack.

First Sunday Collection November 7 Please remember our monthly ingathering of non-perishable food items and travel-sized toiletries and personal items! These items are collected on the first Sunday of each month and distributed to those in our area who need them. Donations may be brought to the receptacles in the coat room at church. Be generous!

Dusting Off Our Name Tags The Worship Committee asks all regular worshippers to consider wearing their nametags on Sunday mornings for a few weeks, so that the Crippen family can begin to learn our names and faces. If you don’t have a name tag or cannot find yours, please call the church office and we will be happy to make one for you.

Attention Middle and High School Mount Olive Youth! I am James Berka. My wife Karen and I would love to see you on Sunday mornings as we work together to start a new tradition. We will meet together during the education hour at 9:30 a.m. In upcoming weeks, we will be moving into a new space which will give you the opportunity to give your input on how the space will be decorated. Our morning discussions link the Gospel with current events and issues in your daily lives, so the discussions will only get better the more of us attend. Karen and I are deeply excited to see each and every one of you!

National Lutheran Choir (and Alumni!) to Present Brahms’ Requiem On Monday, November 1, at 7:30 pm at Benson Great Hall at Bethel University, the National Lutheran Choir commences its celebratory 25th concert season with the annual All Saints Festival. This year's offering includes a complete performance of Johannes Brahms' A German Requiem. Artistic Director David Cherwien will conduct the 100-voice choir comprised of current NLC singers augmented by alumni singers from the group's quarter-century of choral artistry, joined by a full orchestra and guest artists Sonja DuToit Tengblad, soprano, and Jon Nordstrom, baritone. Don't miss this world-class performance of one of the great choral masterworks! Before the performance, beginning at 6:45 pm, Mary Ann Feldman (former Showcase editor, program annotator, and historian for the Minnesota Orchestra) and Paul Westermeyer (Professor of Church Music at Luther Seminary) will present a lively pre-concert discussion about Brahms, his life and music. For additional information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.nlca.com, or call the offices of the National Lutheran Choir at 612.722.2301.

Invitation from the Prayer Chain The Prayer Chain, a group of people from Mount Olive who are willing to pray for others, is available for prayer requests from friends and members of Mount Olive. If you have a concern or struggle for which you would like prayer support, please call Naomi Peterson at 612-824-2228 between 9 am and 9 pm any day of the week. We also honor requests for prayers of thanksgiving. All requests are kept confidential.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Sermon for the feast of St. LukeMonday, 18 October 2010 + 12:00 and 7:00 p.m.Pr. Joseph G. Crippen

Sisters and brothers, grace to you, and peace in Jesus’ name. Amen

Today we have a bit of an odd amalgamation. We celebrate the feast day of Luke, evangelist. Tradition tells us that Luke wrote the third Gospel and the book of Acts. So we celebrate today the proclamation of Good News – the careful work that Luke undertook to “write an orderly account” for Theophilus of the amazing story of the Son of God.

Yet today we also offer prayers for healing. We invite people to come forward for the laying on of hands, anointing, and prayer, for healing of heart, soul, body, and mind. We do this because the same tradition which names Luke as the author of these two marvelous books claims this is the same Luke who was a physician, a companion and co-worker with the apostle Paul. So throughout the ages this day has been a particular day to consider healing God gives. It’s why Mount Olive added this festival to the calendar of lesser festivals we regularly observe.

And not only do we have seemingly two foci today, Gospel proclamation and healing, we really don’t know if Luke the physician actually was the author of the third Gospel and Acts. Most biblical scholars tend to date those books later than it would likely be possible for Paul’s companion, and of course our earliest gospel manuscripts contain no names of authors.

And yet – it seems to me that there is great wisdom in the Church’s tradition here. Whether or not the original author was a healer is far less important than this reality: the Gospel proclaimed is healing. Luke’s efforts to research carefully everything he could to tell the story of Jesus, his death and resurrection, and the growth of the new Church, are efforts to proclaim the healing of the world in this Jesus. And that’s why we’re here today.

Today we remember Luke the healer and Luke the evangelist. And there is no need to reconcile these two.

Because this is the Luke who wrote of the birth of a child who was both one of us and the Son of God. Who told us that the glory of the Lord has broken out of the Holy of Holies and is on the hillside with shepherds.

Who gave us songs to sing like the Benedictus, which promises light to break into the darkness of the world in the coming of this Savior, and like the Magnificat, which promises a restoration of justice in this coming, where the poor are lifted up and the lowly are blessed.

What is this if not healing of the whole world through the coming of God?

This Luke we celebrate is the only one of the evangelists who tells us the story of the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Father. Who understands the grace of God is transformative and welcoming even when we wander so far we cannot think of any way home. And we find ourselves wrapped in the arms of a God who runs down the road and embraces us, welcoming us home without our doing anything.

And the Luke who invites us to see our Lord in the face of the other, the wounded one in the ditch. To consider that we are placed here to be the ones who put bandages and ointments on those who are wounded as if they are Jesus, and carry our Lord to safety.

What is this if not healing of the whole world through the coming of God?

And this Luke is the one who tells us that our Lord Jesus, at his very death, asked forgiveness for those who hated him, rejected him, killed him. Who in one moment demonstrated the depth of God’s love for us and for the world, a love which has no end. Not even death can stop it. And certainly not our sinfulness or waywardness or even rejection of God.

What is this if not healing of the whole world through the coming of God?

Today our joy is that Luke tells us that not only has God broken into our world and come to be with us, but also that forever after there is nothing which can keep us from God.

This is the Luke who consistently throughout Acts tells of barriers broken down, of walls dismantled. Again and again we find that there is nothing hindering us from the healing of God. The Spirit of God even goes to people before the apostles get there – because this is God’s Good News. Whoever this author is, he understood Paul’s passionate claim in Galatians, that there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free, but all are one in Christ Jesus.

There is no need to reconcile these two Lukes because this is one message: the Gospel is healing, that’s the Good News. We are broken. The world is broken. And we long for healing. It’s no mistake that for the Greeks the word for healing is the same word the Gospels use for salvation. God comes to us, and we have life.

It’s as simple as that. And it isn’t simply that our emotional ailments, or our spiritual pain, or our physical disease, or our mental struggles are corrected. Sometimes we don’t experience healing in that way.

What the Good News is is that we know who the true Healer is, where good news is, where help is. This is the Jesus Luke shows us – the Son of God who has come to restore all things. And who knows each of us. God’s promise is to be with us in all our suffering, to strengthen and keep us, and to bring us to new life. And in that promise we find life – even if our other circumstances seem slow to change, or don’t seem to change at all.

So we come here today for healing. For wholeness. For life. We come, knowing we belong to the One who Heals us.

We come because here is food, here is grace, here is all we need. Because thanks to Luke we know we are in the hands of a God who welcomes us home, feeds us with a feast of life, and clothes us in grace.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Accent on Worship “I come, O Savior, to thy table, for weak and weary is my soul.” So writes Friedrich C. Heyder, in a hymn beloved to me which we often sang at the time of sharing Holy Communion in my home congregation when I was growing up. We sang it Sunday at our liturgy at my request, as it is also a song cherished in the tradition of this congregation. And its image of the Eucharist is a common one in hymn and theology: it is the Table of the Lord to which we are invited, and our Lord Jesus is host to us at this feast. Yet we also speak of Christ the sacrifice, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So as the Church has called the place of the Eucharist a table, it has also called it an altar, reminding us of the once for all sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. These two images, table and altar, dominate our understanding of the Eucharist, the life-giving gift of Jesus’ body and blood. Many of you likely noticed on Sunday that I faced you, the people of God, for the whole Eucharistic Prayer, from the Great Thanksgiving through the Lord’s Prayer. This is something of a change for Mount Olive, though pastors here have sometimes faced the congregation during the Great Thanksgiving and the words of institution. My theology and practice, like all of yours, is shaped by my context, my study, my experience. My whole life I have celebrated Communion in a worship space with a free-standing table and the pastor facing the people. The theology of the liturgical renewal movement of the last four to five decades has emphasized the table as the dominant image of the Eucharist, the feast to which our Lord invites us. It is what I have always known and how I was trained and shaped, and is the dominant image of the Eucharist for me as well. But it is not just my context and experience. John 1 tells us that God is dwelling with us in the Son, “putting up a tent with us.” Jesus himself promises that “where two or three are gathered, there am I in the midst of them.” At his death, the curtain to the Holy of Holies is split in two, signifying that God is fully with us, even in our death. There are no more boundaries or barriers to God for us. For Christians, who are now the incarnate children of God, little Christs, God is in our midst. When your presiders have reverenced the congregation after the reading of the Gospel, they were recognizing that God is with us, in our midst. And when I face you during the liturgy of the Meal, I recognize the same thing, that this is the meal of life for us, and that God is with us, in our midst. I have already had a good discussion with Warren Peterson, Director of the Worship Committee about this, and that committee, Cantor Cherwien, and I will continue the conversation about this at future meetings as we come to know and trust each other as pastor and committee, and you and I come to know each other and trust each other as pastor and people. I invite you, my sisters and brothers at Mount Olive, to share in this conversation as well. Facing each other during the Eucharistic Prayer doesn’t mean that other ways of understanding or practice are not acceptable. There is still a deep sense in our theology of the meaning of the altar, and our practice here of reverencing that altar reminds us that not only is this place made holy by God’s presence in and among us, this is a holy place, this is in fact the house of God, holy ground. I invite you to consider that facing each other across our Lord’s table reminds us of the same thing, and enables us to look into each other’s eyes and see the face of Christ as we prepare to share his Meal.

In Christ,Joseph

Semi-Annual Congregation Meeting This Sunday, October 24 - 9:30 a.m. The semi-annual meeting of Mount Olive congregation will be held this Sunday, October 24, at 9:30 a.m. The purpose of this meeting is to approve a budget for 2011. All voting members of Mount Olive are encouraged to attend this important meeting.

First Sunday Collection Please remember our monthly ingathering of non-perishable food items and travel-sized toiletries and personal items! These items are collected on the first Sunday of each month and distributed to those in our area who need them. Donations may be brought to the receptacles in the coat room at church. Be generous!

Dusting Off Our Nametags The Worship Committee asks all regular worshippers to consider wearing their nametags on Sunday mornings for a few weeks, so that the Crippen family can begin to learn our names and faces. If you don’t have a name tag or cannot find yours, please call the church office and we will be happy to make one for you.

Attention Middle and High School Mount Olive Youth! I am James Berka. My wife Karen and I would love to see you on Sunday mornings as we work together to start a new tradition. We will meet together during the education hour at 9:30am. In upcoming weeks, we will be moving into a new space which will give you the opportunity to give your input on how the space will be decorated. Our morning discussions link the Gospel with current events and issues in your daily lives, so the discussions will only get better the more of us attend. Karen and I are deeply excited to see each and every one of you!

Coffee Tasting on November 7 You are invited to a Lutheran World Relief Fair Trade coffee tasting on Sunday, November 7, during the Education Hour between worship services. Featuring four different coffees from LWR’s Fair Trade partner, Equal Exchange, (plus cocoa, tea and other goodies!) the tasting will give you the opportunity to vote on your favorites, to buy some to take home, win prizes, and find out more about how Fair Trade is making a difference. With each purchase, you help farmers earn more for their coffee, gain access to credit, and fund much needed projects in their communities.

Book Discussion Group For their meeting on November 13, the Book Discussion Group will read, The Red and the Black, by Stendhal, and for December 11, Brideshead Revisited, by Evelyn Waugh. This group meets on the second Saturday of each month at 10:00 am in the Chapel Lounge. All readers are welcome!

Music and Fine Arts Series Please make your donation or pledge to this year’s series soon. Someone will be in the narthex between services this Sunday to receive your donation or pledge, or you may simply mail or leave it in the office. Any amount is very helpful and deeply appreciated.

Highlights from the Vestry Meeting The Vestry met on Monday, October 11, for the first time with our new Pastor, Joseph Crippen. Much of the time was spent with introductions and explaining goals and objectives of the various committees. Otherwise, it was business as usual. One of the most important accomplishments was the adoption of the new Joint Agreement between Mount Olive Lutheran Church and Mount Olive Lutheran Church Foundation on Bequest Distributions and Memorial Gifts. We now have a working document that clearly establishes guidelines for designated and undesignated gifts to Mount Olive and/or the Foundation. Also finalized is the Mount Olive Wish List. The list will be updated and coordinated by Vice President Brian Jacobs, and a new list will be hung every Sunday on the bulletin board which displays altar flower donations in the office. The wish list is a vehicle through which all can pick and choose certain items that may be over and above committee budget, but which would still enhance our facilities and programs. The 2011 budget was approved to be set before the congregation at the annual budget meeting slated for October 24th between services. It was also noted that most of the staff reviews have been completed, as per congregation bylaws. The most notable staff and committee reports were Diana Hellerman's review of the new Godly Play Sunday School program, and Paul Schadewald's report of streamlining the Global Missions programs and becoming more focused on missions at which we excel. Paul Sundquist, Treasurer, also commented on the monthly giving report. He noted that our giving still falls well below budget. We anticipate that the coming meetings will be productive and active and that Pastor Joseph Crippen will add a great deal of thoughtful perspective.- Brian Jacobs, Vice President

The Wish List The Mount Olive Wish List is now posted on the bulletin board next to the altar flower donation list in the church office. Each item is separately listed, along with its projected cost. There may be some shipping costs involved, so the donor may certainly round up to offset those costs, or wait for clarification for total cost before remitting payment. There is space for a donor's name and phone number so that the donor can be contacted about how best to send the funds for the item donated. Currently, there are over 40 furniture items, as well as banner stands and several Godly Play items on the list. The Vestry hopes that members will find this to be a satisfying way to give, to the glory of God, certain useful items needed to enhance our learning, fellowship, office, and worship spaces. In addition, the Mount Olive Wish List is available for all committees who are in need of funding certain items or events that are beyond the annual budget. Feel free to search for the item you'd most like to donate and sign up today!! We've already received an anonymous donation of the new reception desk for the West Reception area. We believe there may be one more anonymous donation as well. While we appreciate all donors, we'd prefer to publicly thank and recognize them if possible. However, if you wish to remain anonymous, simply call Vice President, Brian Jacobs, so that arrangements can be made, and so that particular item can be removed from the list. The list will be updated every Sunday. Thank you for perusing the list and thank you for your generosity!

From India With Love In 1987, Mount Olive helped to fuel the launch of the Bethania Kids ministry, and to this day has continued to support it through its mission offerings and prayers. The mission of Bethania is "to bring wholeness and hope to poor, abandoned and disabled children in south India, and to equip them to share God's love." This is accomplished through day care centers, after-school programs, orphanages, a sewing program for girls, and centers for disabled children and adults. On Sunday, November 14, the congregation will have a rare opportunity to meet two of the ministry's India workers and to hear first-hand about the work they are doing. Godfrey Henry Immanual and Paramadass, visiting the States from India for the first time, will speak at our education forum, and following the second liturgy there will be an Indian meal - an opportunity to welcome them to Mount Olive and socialize with them. Mark your calendar now so that you can see and celebrate what your Bethania support is doing. For more information, contact Missions Director Paul Schadewald, Gene Hennig, or Mark Spitzack.

National Lutheran Choir (and Alumni!) to Present Brahms’ Requiem On Monday, November 1, at 7:30 pm at Benson Great Hall at Bethel University, the National Lutheran Choir commences its celebratory 25th concert season with the annual All Saints Festival. This year's offering includes a complete performance of Johannes Brahms' A German Requieum. Artistic Director David Cherwien will conduct 100-voice choir comprised of current NLC singers augmented by alumni singers from the group's quarter-century of choral artistry. Joined by a full orchestra and guest artists Sonja DuToit Tengblad, soprano, and Jon Nordstrom, baritone, don't miss this world-class performance of one of the great choral masterworks! Before the performance, beginning at 6:45 pm, Mary Ann Feldman (former Showcase editor, program annotator, and historian for the Minnesota Orchestra) and Paul Westermeyer (Professor of Church Music at Luther Seminary) will present a lively pre-concert discussion about Brahms, his life and music. For additional information or to purchase tickets, please visit, www.nlca.com, or call 612.722.2301.

Consecration Sunday set for Nov. 14 Consecration Sunday, the day members of Mount Olive pledge their intentions for giving in 2011, will be Sunday, Nov. 14. This is a date change from the October calendar, so please take note. At worship that day members of Mount Olive will be invited to offer pledge cards declaring their intent for giving to the ministry God has called us to do together. These pledge cards and current third quarter contribution statements will be mailed to members the first part of next week. Then, on Christ the King Sunday, Nov. 21, there will be a focus on opportunities for service in the ministries of Mount Olive held between services, as well as a celebratory meal following the second liturgy. As we end the Church Year, we will commit ourselves in these two weeks to the work God has placed before us here, and all members are invited to participate in these events.

Thank You with All our Hearts! Thank you, sisters and brothers at Mount Olive, for your gracious, kind, and generous welcome on Oct. 17, to us and to our extended family. Thank you to the many who cooked, served, and cleaned up after a truly wonderful meal. Thank you to the many who took the time to greet us and make us feel welcome. Thank you to all who led and assisted and prepared for the worship which was a praise of God to be remembered and cherished. This was such a sign of God’s grace to us, and we are grateful to you all! You have made us welcome with the love of Christ, and we are delighted to be with you in this ministry and life together!– Joseph, Mary, Hannah, Martha, Rachel, and Peter Crippen

Monday, October 18, 2010

The writer, Anne Lamont, once said, “The two best prayers I know are: ‘Help me, help me, help me’ and ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you’.” The Tenth Leper in today’s gospel teaches us the importance of keeping those two best prayers joined together.

There were ten lepers in today’s gospel – ten people suffering from that dread disease.Leprosy was & is an infectious disease, characterized by disfiguring skin sores,nerve damage, and numbness in the hands, arms, legs and feet.

In Jesus’ day leprosy was thought to be highly contagious and so lepers were required by law to keep their distance from those who were healthy. They were required to live with other lepers in colonies outside of town. They were effectively cut off from family,friends, work, and the rest of society.

According to the book of Leviticus: “The one who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, … and cry ‘Unclean, unclean’. He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease… and he shall dwell alone in a habitation outside the camp.” (Lev. 13:45-46)

Lepers no doubt lived difficult lives and, I expect, they despaired from time to timeof ever being whole, healthy, or normal again. And so the ten lepers in today’s gospeldrew near to Jesus, having heard of his reputation as a healer. Keeping their distance as proscribed by law, they called out to him, “Jesus, master, have mercy on us.” It was their version of that first best prayer, Help me, help me, help me.

We too, brothers and sisters, you and I, not unlike those 10 lepers, suffer from a dread condition. Our is not a physical illness like leprosy, but a spiritual condition. It is our sinful waywardness; our inability, despite our best efforts, to be the people we most want to be, the people God calls us to be; our inability, despite our best efforts, to live the lives God calls us to live. The dread condition of our sin cuts us off from God,others, and even ourselves. It causes us to band together in a colony with other sinners for solace and support – a colony we call the church. From to time we despair of ever being healed of this condition - of ever being the whole, holy people we are called to be.

And so we too draw near Jesus, knowing his reputation as a healer and a savior. We call out to him, here in this assembly each and every week, we pray: “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us.” It is our prayer of ‘Help me, help me – help us, help us.

Jesus told the ten lepers, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” Now in that moment, Jesus’ words made no sense. Lepers were required to show themselves to the priests afterthey had been cured of their disease. And the priest would examine the leper and if he had indeed been healed, the priest would certify that this person was now culturally,legally, and religiously clean.

But these ten lepers were still suffering from their dread disease, they were still unclean. And so it made no sense to go to the priests. But they went anyway. They went, presumably to show themselves to the priests (or maybe they just wandered off, bewildered by Jesus’ illogical suggestion.) Either way, as they went they were healed. As if in the blink of an eye they were changed from unclean to clean, from ill to well. And as we heard, nine of them kept right on going down the road and out of sight.

But one turned back, disobeying Jesus command. The tenth leper, grateful for the gift of healing, returned to give thanks to the Giver of that gift. And he was a Samaritan: The only non-Jew in the group.

He shouted out his praise to God and fell at Jesus’ feet. I imagine him weeping tears of grateful joy.He fell on his face before Jesus and prayed that second best prayer over and over again: Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! Jesus wondered aloud: “Where are the nine? Is this foreigner the only one to return and give praise to God?”

“This foreigner.” Have you ever noticed, Brothers & Sister, how often it is with Jesus that a foreigner, an outsider, an outcast, a sinner is held up as an example of faith?Think of the “Good Samaritan” (the good foreigner) – who stopped to help the man who had been beaten when others passed by on the other side of the road, unwilling to get involved. Or the “sinful” woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and dried them with her hair, when Jesus’ host that evening failed to offer Him the usual foot washing hospitality. Or the Canaanite woman who asked for Jesus’ help. When he told her it is not right to give the children’s bread to the dogs”, she came right back at him saying“But even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table”.

And today we meet the Tenth Leper, the foreigner, the only one of the ten who remembered his manners, who demonstrates an attitude of gratitude in response to God’s gift. Jesus reaches down and lifts the grateful, former leper to his feet, saying Go, my child, Go, live your life, your faith has made you well. Literally he tells him, Your faith has saved you.

In the words of one wise preacher: “Ten were healed of their skin disease, but only one was saved. Ten were declared clean and restored to society, but only one was said to have faith. Ten set out for Jerusalem to claim their free gifts as they were told, but only one turned back and gave himself to the Giver instead. Ten behaved like good lepers, good Jews; only one, a double loser, behaved like a man in love.” (Barbara Brown Taylor, The Preaching Life, page 110.)

As for you and me, Sisters & Brothers, while we were yet sinners, while we were still lost in our wayward wanderings, Jesus died for us. And by his wounds we are healed.Because of Jesus, as if in the blink of an eye, we are changed from sinners to saints,from lost to found, we are “ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven”.

And what is our response to that amazing gift of grace? Do we behave like the nine lepers, continuing on down the road? Or do we react like the tenth leper, falling at Jesus’ feet with grateful hearts? Having prayed our Help me, help me’s, do we also pray “Thank you, thank you??

Well, this I know: we gather here together each week in worship not only to prayLamb of God, have mercy on us, but also to give God thanks. We gather here together in worship each week because we know, we know that (in the words of the liturgy) “it is our duty and our delight at all times and in all places to give God thanks and praise”. And so here together each week we sing with gusto hymns of thanks and praise. We bow our heads, our hearts and our bodies in thanksgiving. We fall to our knees to thank God for God’s good and many blessings. We pray the Great Thanksgiving, remembering and giving thanks for all God’s saving acts, all the while together facing East in eager expectation of that day when our Savior will come again like the rising sun. And we lift us empty hands to gratefully receive the bread of heaven and the cup of salvation.

As Martin Luther wrote long ago, in words many of us once committed to memory: “I believe that God has created me and all that exists…He provides me with food and clothing, home and family, daily work and all I need from day to day. God also protects me in time of danger and guards me from every evil. All this God does out of fatherly and divine goodness and mercy, though I do not deserve it. Therefore I surely ought to thank and praise, serve and obey God.”

Therefore we surely ought to thank and praise, serve and obey God. And, truth be told, Brothers and Sisters, there are moments for each of us, when God’s gracious, healing lovewashes over us anew in such a way that we are so filled with gratitude, so overcome with thanks for the grace that transforms us from having to stand off afar calling out “Unclean” to now being worthy to come into God’s very presence, so thankful are we in those moments that were it not for our Midwestern, Minnesota Lutheran stoicism we would behave exactly like the Tenth Leper: running forward down this aisle and falling on our faces at the foot of the altar as if at the feet of Jesus himself, weeping tears of joyand praying over and over again “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

And when we do, when we fall on our faces at Jesus’ feet, pouring out our thanks and praise, if we listen, amid the sounds of our tears and our thank you prayers, if we listen, we will hear the voice of our sweet savior speaking to us, saying: Get up my dear child, go live your life, your faith in me and my love for you have saved you.

The two best prayers I know are: ‘Help me, help me, help me’ and ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you’.” The Tenth Leper in today’s gospel teaches us the importance of keeping those two best prayers joined together.

So Thanks be to God, Sisters & Brothers!(say it with me)Thanks be to God!

In the 1990s there were several books published on how to live joyfully or, put simply, how to be happy. Oprah Winfrey had a number of spiritual gurus on her program giving the same message. Every author and person claiming to be an expert in the area of how to live a full life listed gratitude as one of the components. "Live in gratitude," they would advise. Everything that Jesus taught had a practical element. He knew that when we live in the presence of God, we live in joy. The Gospel for Ordinary Time 28 is the story of the healing of the ten lepers one of whom (the Samaritan) came back to prostrate himself at Jesus' feet and give thanks. Jesus told him that his faith had made him well. We need faith in order to live in gratitude. In this Gospel reading we are witnesses to the faith of the Samaritan leper, as acknowledged by Jesus. We can be grateful to our friends and family for all that they do for us, but to live in gratitude is a different thing. To live in this way is thanking God everyday for all that we have. If we thank God upon awakening for giving us another day of life, the beauty of God's creation, our health, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and the people in our lives who love us, we begin to appreciate all that we have been given. This way of life can help us through some very hard times, because gratitude grows out of faith and faith continues to build our gratitude, which brings us joy in the midst of whatever is going on in our lives. I would like to imagine that the Samaritan leper went on to live his life with deep contentment and joy far greater than the other nine who didn't return to give thanks.- Donna Neste

Sunday’s Adult Forum

October 10: Dr. Lori Brandt Hale’s presentation about the life and thought of Dietrich Bonhoeffer (see complete information elsewhere in this issue of The Olive Branch.)

The Feast of St. Francis of AssisiMonday, October 4, 2010 – 7:00 pmBlessing of Animals Bring your friends (2-legged, 4-legged, and no-legged!) for this annual service of blessing of pets, held in the Nave…tonight!

Pastor Joseph Crippen to be Installed on October 17

The celebratory Eucharist with Rite of Installation will be at 10:45 a.m. on Sunday, October 17. There will also be Morning Prayer at 8:00 a.m. Following the liturgy, all are invited to attend a celebration luncheon to honor and welcome the Crippen family. Those preparing the meal need to know how many are coming, and ask that you let us know if you are planning to come, so that they know how much food to prepare. Reservation cards were mailed to all Mount Olive members and friends last week, and they are also available at church in the narthex. If you are planning to come, return a reservation card, or call or email the church office by October 10 to let us know. Everyone is welcome!

A Note of Thanks

Dear Friends, Thank you for the farewell brunch, gifts, and the many cards. I have been reading a few at a time savoring your love, care, and thoughtfulness, then I get another tissue. Our journey together has been eventful and spirit- filled, I sense the Spirit of God mightily as I read each card.Your thankful former servant, Hollie Holt-Woehl

Chicago Avenue Construction

Chicago Avenue (in front of the church) will be closed for approximately one more week as the Minneapolis Public Works Dept. removes the existing asphalt on the street and replaces it with new pavement. Chicago Ave. is posted “NO PARKING,” and during this time we ask that all from Mount Olive park in the church parking lot across 31st Ave. until the project is complete. There are two parking spaces and a ramp behind the church which can be used to drop off or pick up those with accessibility needs during this time.

Pastoral Care in the Post-Interim Interim

During these weeks before Pastor Crippen begins his ministry among us on October 11, please know that pastoral care is available to all who need it. If you are in need of a pastor, please call Rev. Art Halbardier at 763-639-7701, or Rev. Rob Ruff at 651-983-9622.

Book Discussion Group For their meeting this Saturday, October 9, the Book Discussion group will read, The Corrections, by Jonathan Franzen. And for their meeting on November 13, they will read, The Red and the Black, by Stendhal. The Book Discussion Group meets on the second Saturday of each month at 10:00 am in the Chapel Lounge. All readers are welcome!

Dr. Hale to Speak on Bonhoeffer

As we approach the U.S. election day, we should reflect on how Christians, whose Lord is Jesus Christ, manage their affairs in the civic state. Are “Church” and “State” really separate? Should they be? These are long-rehearsed questions within the Lutheran tradition. On October 3 and 10, Dr. Lori Brandt Hale of Augsburg College will speak about the life and thought of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. A young and brilliant Lutheran theologian in Germany during the rise of Hitler and the Nazi state, Bonhoeffer struggled with his loyalties to Christ (which he believed required a commitment to nonviolence) and his profound concern over the spread of Nazi terror. He eventually forsook nonviolence to participate in a conspiracy toward the assassination of Adolph Hitler. He was discovered and eventually executed by the Nazis for his involvement in that conspiracy. And he is now honored in the Lutheran calendar as a martyr for Christ for giving his life in defense of the defenseless. But how did his theology develop? Who was this German pastor and theologian – now one of the most controversial of those considered martyrs? Dr. Hale will address these and other questions in her two presentations in the Adult Forum, a task for which she is eminently qualified. Dr. Hale is associate professor of religion at Augsburg College, having completed her Ph.D. dissertation on Bonhoeffer at the University of Virginia. She is also the chair-elect of the English Section of the International Bonhoeffer Society.

Creation Care Group

Lutherans have long been concerned with stewardship issues. More and more of us are redefining stewardship to include creation care. Indeed, the rise of the local interfaith group Congregations Caring for Creation (http://www.ccc.nonprofitoffice.com/) illustrates the powerful ways that people of faith can respond to cological degradation, climate change, and environmental inequities. W With this in mind, it seems appropriate for our congregation to begin to explore the possibility of establishing a Creation Care group here at Mount Olive. Please join us for a discussion in the Undercroft at 9:30 a.m. on October 10, 2010 to look into the possibilities of starting such a group. If you are interested, but unable to attend, contact MichaelLansing at lansing@augsburg.edu with your ideas. Thanks!

Volunteer Tutors Still Needed for Way to Goals Tutoring

Additional tutors are needed for Way to Goals Tutoring! If YOU can find it in your heart to take on the rewarding volunteer task of helping a child with homework (for an hour each Tuesday evening at 7 pm, October-May), please call Donna Neste at church and she will give you all the details and answer any questions about the program that you may have.

Sign Up, Sign Up for Coffee!

Mount Olive is currently in need of hosts for coffee hour after each liturgy on Sunday mornings. A sign up sheet is available at church – if you don’t see it when you are here on Sundays, ask someone! Or call the church office to sign up!

Dusting Off Our Name Tags Beginning on October 17 and for at least a few weeks thereafter, the Worship Committee asks all regular worshipers to consider wearing their name tags on Sunday mornings, so that the Crippen family can begin to learn our names and faces. Until then, please be sure you have a name tag in the narthex. If you don’t have one or cannot find yours, please call the church office and we will make one for you.

It is possible that the folks who pick our Sunday readings overestimate us. For sure, they overestimate me! The gospel reading I just read begins with a plea from Jesus’ disciples, “Increase our faith!”

What prompted that? Why do they need a booster for their faith? I suppose all of you remember exactly what happened in the verses just before this, but for the life of me, I could not.I was forced, of all things, to open my Bible. To find what we missed in the verses preceding.Just to review: We’ve been following Jesus and the 12 for weeks now, taking the long road to Jerusalem. It hasn’t been a happy trip.

Jesus announced he is going to Jerusalem. The 12 don’t understand why. But they do know, “He’s going to get killed down there!”, and, even more pertinent, “So are we!”Jesus tries to teach them that there is a reason for this, about the new kingdom his suffering will create. The 12 don’t get that either.

But they do start throwing elbows in an ongoing spat about which of them more deserves to sit at the right and left side of Jesus in the new regime.

Jesus tells them parables. Like the ones we’ve heard in recent weeks. A man has two sons. A rich man and poor Lazarus. They don’t get it.

Finally Jesus resorts to direct instructions. That’s what was in the verses just before today’s reading: Jesus said to them, “If another disciple sins, you must rebuke the offender, but if there is repentance, you must forgive. Even if the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, `I repent,’ you must forgive.”

No wonder they throw up their hands helplessly, “Increase our faith!” Who can do that? Perhaps forgive a repeat sinner seven times in a lifetime. But, seven times a day? Day after day?I find that I am a lot more like these disciples than I wish; perhaps you do also. These 12 have done significant things in order to follow Jesus. They have after all left homes and jobs and families. But now Jesus is asking them to do impossible things. They know that they will fail. He’s asking way too much.

How is it possible to regard people who are perpetually evil as brothers and sisters, rather than villains? The 12 want to be transformed, but they don’t really believe that they can be.The phrase at the beginning of the gospel, “If you had faith like a mustard seed…” is often misinterpreted as a put-down of the 12. Of their meager faith.

Actually, what Jesus is saying is quite the opposite.

I’m no scholar of Greek, but others who are say the sense of this “if” clause in Greek is that the thing it declares is actually already true. In other words, Jesus is saying, “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed – which you DO!”, you have faith capable of uprooting a tree – and not just any old tree, but a mulberry which lives to be as much as 600 years old, with an unbelievable root system that can actually break rocks in its search for water.

Even the smallest faith – and you have it – can uproot a mulberry tree, fly it through the air and replant it on top of salt water. I have no idea why one would want to - that’s not the point. Jesus says, gently. “You have plenty of faith to accomplish everything I ask of you - already.”It was a hard thing for these first 12 disciples of Jesus to let go of the things they had been taught, ways that were acceptable in their culture, and to follow the radical ways of Jesus.It’s a hard thing to be a 2010 disciple also in our world, and not be dragged down into becoming “of the world.” And there are many things that threaten to do just that.For example, here we are a month before the elections, and “we the people” have never been more divided. What has become of civil conversation, of looking for common ground? The political campaigns have no interest in such niceties. Strategists have learned that you hang these incredible labels around the neck of the opponent because that has become the way you win. They push us, the electorate, to not just disagree, but to hate the other side so they can trust us to vote for their guy. To be indelibly “red”, or “blue” – and no shades in between.A commentator on NPR was interviewing a woman at the recent Glen Beck rally in Washington, an ardent supporter of Beck’s politics - and I mean ardent. He asked, “So how do you get along with friends who don’t share your views?” To which she answered, “Easy. I don’t have any friends who don’t share my views.”

It’s an evil thing, this labeling of people: liberal/radical/Muslim/gay - you know the list. We have become “we the divided,” rather than “we the people,” more and more at odds with one another.Another issue of our culture many have identified is a kind of growing narcissism; we are becoming a culture of individuals with little sense of responsibility to a larger community. Think of the prevalence of the word “my” in our usage: my friends, my space, my things, my needs. Only those whom I have “friended” can write on my wall. There may be a security when we limit ourselves to associating only with those with whom we feel comfortable, but what is the future of that vital connection with and responsibility for others who may come at things a little differently?

Just two trends that work at odds with being a disciple.

Because caring for and seeing the value of all people is exactly what Jesus asks of his disciples. Even when they have gone way too far. If a person repents to you seven times a day, then seven times we are called upon to “re-see” them as, yes, a child of God. This scoundrel who may have done you wrong time and again is not a villain, but a fellow child of God as capable of sin as we ourselves.

It’s one darn risky prayer we pray: Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. But, that’s the expectation. Jesus tells us it is also the possibility, even for a mustard seed-size faith.

Forgiveness isn’t about whitewashing over the past. It’s about seeing those around us in a new light. As equal members of the flock. But, it’s no wonder this caused the 12 to cry out for an extra helping of faith. They knew Jesus expectations were beyond their capacity. But they were wrong in thinking that what they needed was “more” - more power, a better road map, some additional answers.

My own life, and perhaps yours also, is full of examples of the fallacious belief that if I can somehow get everything in order first, if I just get my ducks in a row, then I’ll be able to take care of whatever I need to do. If I drop a few pounds, then I’ll get back to exercising again. As soon as the economy improves I will be more generous in supporting God’s work … As soon as the kids grow up, when work slacks off a little, when I retire, I’ll get more involved in ministry to others…

Always there’s something…someday…. Can you imagine Jesus responding, gently, “Excuses. Excuses.”? Because that day will never be. Our ducks to not stay lined up properly. We will never have all the answers. We will never make it on our own.

Joseph Sittler, my dear mentor, often described faith as standing with our Lord Jesus with both feet firmly planted in mid-air!

Simon Peter’s greatest moment of faith was that day when he risked getting out of the boat to walk toward his Lord Jesus, with nothing under his feet but water.

In college, I had a young religion professor, Steve Schmidt, who would tell this story several times a semester to help us understand faith. His two year-old son would wait each night on the upper bunk bed in his room, wait for his dad to come tuck him in. As soon as Steve would cross the threshold, his little boy would leap from the bunk toward his father, yelling, “Catch me, daddy!” Steve loved that story. “That is faith!” he would tell us. Faith is not knowing where we’re going to land. It’s not doing our best – thank God, not about doing our best. Not about having all our ducks in a row. Faith is nothing more than a leap into uncharted territory, trusting the mercy and promises of God, even though nothing else appears to be sure. Nothing more than that leap…but nothing less than that leap either.

And that sort of faith can move mountains or mulberry trees, because it is faith in Jesus, not faith in ourselves, or our well-ordered ducks, our goodness or our understanding.

Day to day, you and I on the one hand face the numbing realities of life in our world: stories of bias and prejudice, malice, greed, hunger, violence against children and the elderly – “glass ceilings, “closed doors,” injustices of all kinds. And, on the other hand, our ears are filled with Jesus’ call to stand against such evil and to bring some word of hope and redemption to those beaten down by our world.

What can one individual, or one small congregation that cares do in the face of such odds?The gospel of today is so for us: The gospel that even faith the size of a mustard seed has rock-crunching, tree-lifting, life-changing, world-moving potential. Because God is at work through it.

Even our smallest effort has power – in God’s hands. That’s also the faith of our prayer: God’s will will be done. As Luther adds, we pray in this petition that it be done among us also.Remember in “TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD,” when the band of white men come at night and surround the jail where Tom the young black man wrongly accused of a crime, is held? The men are a mob. They do not see Tom, a man; they only see an enemy, a symbol – because of his color, that label thing. They are blinded by rage.

Scout is the young daughter of the attorney who has defended Tom; as a result, the attorney and his family have also become hated and shunned by the community. Scout is watching the ugly mob get more and more out of control. Her father tells her to run away and go home. But Scout doesn’t run. She approaches one of the men in the mob, Mr. Cunningham, and speaks a simple word that becomes the mustard seed, if you will.

Scout looks up at Mr. Cunningham, and says, “Hey, Mr. Cunningham, don’t you remember me? I go to school with Walter. He’s your boy, ain’t he? We brought him home for dinner one time. Tell your boy `hey` for me, will you?” There was a long pause. Then the big man separated himself from the mob, squatted down and took Scout by both her shoulders. “I’ll tell him you said `hey,’ little lady.” The mob dispersed.

Scout had whispered the words of grace. She revealed that mustard seed of faith that opened the man’s eyes and heart and soul. Instead of a black and white, or red and blue, it became a world of grace. God whispers such words of grace every day into our world. God would do so through you and me.

At the end of today’s gospel, Jesus asks the 12, which of you who has a slave, a slave who has worked all day in the field, will invite that slave to sit down for dinner with you?

A slave slaves, that’s what they do, and the slave expects no more; the slave knows the alternative is he can be traded in like one of Cantor Cherwien’s used cars, and replaced with a new one. Who would invite a person of so little worth to sit down at dinner? The answer of course is there is only one who does just that, invites even you and me to his banquet, not for the sake of what we have done which is nothing of any worth, but simply out of love for us. And, for the sake of the mustard seed of faith that he would feed there. Which is why he says again, today, “Come. Come, and be with me.” Amen